Scottsdale Eyes McDowell Corridor Plan

Scottsdale city staff are expected to present to city council a plan they say could help spur additional economic activity within the McDowell Corridor as public and private revitalization efforts continue.

Resolution 9990 — the McDowell Corridor Fee Schedule — temporarily modifies certain residential and commercial development fees. If adopted, the new fees would be in place for two years.

Scottsdale City Council will have the final say in the matter as the proposed resolution will appear on the March 17 city council meeting agenda.

City leaders refer to the McDowell Corridor as an eight-square-mile area spanning McDowell Road from Pima Road west to Phoenix and including surrounding neighborhoods north to Osborn Road and south to the city limits.

Resolution 9990 will, in most cases, create a 44 to 45 percent reduction in development fees for both residential and commercial development and redevelopment projects within McDowell Corridor limits, the March 17 staff report summarizes.

A top priority

Scottsdale Councilwoman Suzanne Klapp says revitalization of the McDowell Corridor remains a top priority for Scottsdale City Council.

“I believe this is important because revitalization of the area is a top priority for council at this moment in time,” Councilwoman Klapp said in a March 10 phone interview.

The McDowell Road corridor has seen an influx of economic activity over the last year. The Scottsdale Gateway Alliance, a collection of local residents and business owners, seeks to advance investment and revitalization opportunities in southern Scottsdale and along the McDowell Road Corridor.

Dana Close, a founding member of the SGA, says attitudes have shifted since the group’s inception.

“Things are going great,” she said in a March 10 phone interview. “It’s a different world then it was two years ago. We have been seeing a lot of activity.”

Ms. Close says the next few years along McDowell Road are going to be exciting.